Tanked

Tanked
Picture for representational purpose only
Thirty seven per cent of overhead water tanks to be dismantled on priority

Spread across the vast urban expanse, overhead water tanks are Bengaluru’s landmarks. Many of these will soon vanish altogether from the cityscape as the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) feels the tanks have become redundant.

Currently, there are 51 overhead tanks in the city. Out of these, 19 have been identified as redundant. These tanks will be demolished.

So far, six have already been brought down.

According to BWSSB chief engineer BM Somashekar, the distribution of water networks has changed in the city over time. “Earlier, we used to identify the ridge points where we would construct a ground level reservoir and then an overhead tank. Water used to be pumped to the tank and then gravity would help supply water to the nearby residential areas. However, times have changed and so has technology. Now, most of the water tanks are turning out to be white elephants as they are very costly to maintain with not much benefit. Instead of using electricity to pump water and then spending money to maintain it, we are finding it easier to supply water directly to consumers without routing it via tanks,” Somashekar told Bangalore Mirror.

Most of these tanks were built 30 to 40 years ago, said a BWSSB official. “More than 50 tanks were built so that people would not have a shortage of drinking water. At the time, the number of dependents on tanks was high. Bore wells increased in recent years. Gradually, the dependence of overhead tanks declined. Over time, some of these tanks have been damaged as well. We have started identifying such tanks to dismantle them. The water tanks at Jayanagar and Banashankari
have been safely dismantled. The move comes after a number of complaints from the public about the tanks’ condition,” said another official, adding that the technology of using water is also changing.

“Now many residents are using RO filters. Therefore, the dependence on overhead tanks is almost nil. Moreover, the cost of treating the tank water is high,” he explained.

BWSSB officials said though the tanks will be razed, the ground level reservoirs (GLR) constructed along with the tanks will continue to function. “Currently, there are 56 GLRs in the city. We will continue to preserve these as they are very important in the distribution chain,” Somashekar elaborated.

Dinesh Kumar, a resident of Rajajinagar said: “I feel that BWSSB should take priority in razing defunct water tanks. If the tanks are not used, there is the danger of people climbing up these, risking their lives. It may end up being a den of illegal activities, even if the gates are locked. Those staying near the tanks are always at risk if the tank is in a dilapidated condition.”

Meanwhile, BWSSB is cracking down on those indulging in meter bypassing. So far, 3,774 connections were disconnected and consumers penalised as some were bypassing the meters. Officials are also trying to retrieve the balance amount by going for back billing.
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